Public voting closes for Hotelier Maldives Awards 2026
Hotelier Maldives has closed public voting for the Hotelier Maldives Awards 2026, with more than 250,000 votes received during the one-month voting period.
The public voting stage marked a key part of this year’s awards process, offering industry professionals and the wider public an opportunity to support nominees across the various award categories. The voting period drew strong engagement, reflecting continued interest in recognising individuals working across the Maldives’ resort sector.
This year’s awards received more than 460 nominations from 179 operational resorts across the Maldives, following the close of nominations in February. The figures mark another year of participation in the awards, which continue to highlight the people working across different areas of the country’s hospitality industry.
The Hotelier Maldives Awards 2026, presented by Bestbuy Maldives (BBM), will be held on 26 April at NIVA Kurumba Maldives. Dhiraagu is the Platinum Partner, while Storm Events is the Organising Partner. The awards are also supported by Metalsigns and ALIA as Associate Sponsors, Lightsout Studios and SESSION by OOFI as Associate Partners, Souvenir Marine as Transport Partner, and Male’ Aerated Water Company (MAWC) as Beverage Partner.
Launched in 2024, the Hotelier Maldives Awards is the only national platform dedicated exclusively to recognising professionals in the Maldives’ resort-based hospitality industry. The initiative aims to celebrate individuals whose work contributes to the growth and performance of the tourism sector.
Ali Naafiz, Editor of Hotelier Maldives, said the response to this year’s public voting reflects the strong support for hospitality professionals across the country.
“The response to this year’s public voting has been encouraging, with more than 250,000 votes received over the past month. The level of engagement reflects the industry’s interest in recognising the people who contribute to the success of Maldives tourism,” he said.
He added that the awards continue to grow as a platform that brings wider visibility to resort professionals and their work.
“With public voting now closed, we look forward to the final stage of the awards process and to celebrating the nominees and winners later this month,” he said.
Winners of the Hotelier Maldives Awards 2026 will be determined through a combined evaluation process. Final scores are based on a 60 per cent weighting from an independent judging panel and a 40 per cent weighting from public voting. The judging panel comprises professionals from hospitality, culinary arts, training, destination marketing and media, bringing experience from different areas of the industry.
The awards programme has included nominations, public voting and judging, with the process set to conclude at the gala event on 26 April, where winners across the award categories will be announced.
